Barao coaxed a reluctant tapout from the 22-year-old Californian
with a fourth-round arm-triangle choke, as he retained his interim
Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight crown in the
UFC on Fuel TV 7 main event on Saturday at Wembley Arena in
London. The Nova Uniao ace has won his last 20 fights, quickly
establishing himself as one of the premier pound-for-pound
competitors in the sport.

McDonald put his notoriously heavy hands on the Brazilian in the
first round, dropping him to his knees with a volley of short right
hands in the clinch. Barao cleared the hurdle with ease and spent
the next three frames deploying his fantastic all-around skills. In
the fourth round, he pulled McDonald to the ground and, in a blink,
transitioned to the fight-ending choke.

With reigning bantamweight champion Dominick
Cruz still sidelined with a career-threatening knee injury,
Barao’s next move figures to come in another defense of his interim
gold. All factors considered, former World Extreme Cagefighting
titleholder Eddie
Wineland appears to be next in line. The rugged
Duneland Vale Tudo representative has posted back-to-back wins
over Scott
Jorgensen and Brad
Pickett, and his nuclear right hand makes him a threat to
anyone at 135 pounds.

Considering his current tear, Barao will likely be favored against
any bantamweight -- even Cruz -- for the foreseeable future. What’s
more, at 25 years of age, his best days may still be ahead of
him.

In the wake of UFC on Fuel TV 7 “Barao vs. McDonald,” here are six
other matches that ought to be made:

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Photo

Pickett versus McDonald?

Michael
McDonald vs. Brad
Pickett-Mike Easton
loser: Defeat stings, but McDonald will only benefit from
his encounter with Barao at the edge of the 135-pound mountaintop.
He turned 22 in January, seems wise beyond his years and has plenty
of time to shore up the holes in his already potent game. McDonald
responded well to his first loss in 2009, as he proceeded to rattle
off eight wins in a row. One has to surmise he will do the same
here. Pickett and Easton will lock horns at UFC on Fuel TV 9 on
April 6 in Sweden.

Cub Swanson
vs. Chan Sung
Jung: Swanson staked his claim as a potential title
contender at 145 pounds, as he earned a unanimous decision over
American Top Team’s Dustin
Poirier in the co-main event. The Jackson’s Mixed Martial Arts
standout will enter his next bout on a four-fight winning streak.
Jung has not fought since he rendered Poirier unconscious with a
brabo choke in Sherdog.com’s 2012 “Fight of the Year” nine months
ago. The 25-year-old Korean underwent surgery to repair a damaged
shoulder last summer.

Dustin
Poirier vs. Hatsu
Hioki: Like McDonald, Poirier has time to grow and
improve. The 24-year-old Louisianan did well in spurts against
Swanson, but he lacked the consistency he needed to do the job. A
Tim
Credeur protégé who has relocated to American Top Team, Poirier
has lost two of his last three fights but should not fall far on
the 145-pound totem pole. Hioki undoubtedly wants to get back on
the horse following his controversial and widely panned decision
defeat to Clay Guida in
January.

Jimi Manuwa
vs. James Te
Huna: Manuwa and Te Huna met with vastly different
experiences at UFC on Fuel TV 7. Manuwa’s light heavyweight
showcase with French striker Cyrille
Diabate ended in anti-climactic fashion when a leg injury
forced “The Snake” to bow out of the match in between rounds one
and two. Te Huna, meanwhile, survived a harrowing encounter with a
Ryan
Jimmo head kick, authored a stirring comeback and ultimately
earned a unanimous decision, halting the Canadian’s 17-fight
winning streak in the process.

Gunnar
Nelson vs. T.J.
Waldburger: No one disputes Nelson’s considerable
talents, but the Icelandic grappling prodigy remains a little rough
around the edges. While the 24-year-old Renzo Gracie
understudy managed to notch the most significant victory of his MMA
career over Jorge
Santiago, he ate plenty of leather from the former Sengoku
champion. Waldburger has compiled a 4-2 record since joining the
UFC in 2010, having earned a reputation as one of the top
submission fighters in the welterweight division.

Matt Riddle
vs. John
Hathaway: Riddle flawlessly executed his game plan
against British striker Che Mills, as
he kept the former Cage Rage champion guessing with a steady diet
of clinches and takedowns. The 27-year-old may not move the needle
much in terms of entertainment value, but his approach has proven
successful since Season 7 of “The Ultimate Fighter” launched him
into the Octagon with no professional experience under his belt.
The once-beaten Hathaway last appeared at UFC on Fuel TV 5 in
September, when he cruised to his third straight victory with a
unanimous decision over fellow Brit John
Maguire.